Energy Labeling To Be Required On TVs

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced yesterday that those EnergyGuide labels consumers are familiar with on home appliances such as washing machines and refrigerators will now appear as well on televisions built after May 10, 2011. This is a mandatory requirement from the FTC to electronics manufacturers, as opposed to the voluntary Energy Star labeling program from the EPA.

The EnergyGuide labels, like the one pictured below, will provide useful information to consumers such as the television’s estimated annual energy cost and a comparison with the annual energy cost of other televisions with similar screen sizes. It will be required that the new labels be visible from the front of the televisions, in the form of either a triangular label or a rectangular label. And, beginning in July, 2011, websites that sell televisions will be required as well to display an image of the full EnergyGuide label.

image via FTC

The FTC said it was required to consider whether EnergyGuide labels should be displayed on certain consumer electronics, including televisions, by the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007. In March last year the agency sought comments on whether the labels should be required on these products. Based on the comments received, it ultimately moved forward with yesterday’s decision.

The consumer electronics industry, for its part, seems to be welcoming the new label requirement. A statement put out by the industry’s trade group the Consumer Electronics Association said that it is “an exciting and important development for consumers that will provide helpful energy use information for TVs.”

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I am the editor-in-chief and founder for EarthTechling. This site is my desire to bring the world of green technology to consumers in a timely and informative matter. Prior to this my previous ventures have included a strong freelance writing career and time spent at Silicon Valley start ups.